Strasburg’s arrival throws curve to expectant couple

I know we’re all driving ourselves crazy trying to pick Strasburg’s debut date. It’s a can’t-miss event and sometimes it’s hard to plan life around baseball especially with so many unknown factors.

For season ticker holders Gavin and Rebecca Birch, it’s especially hard. The couple is expecting their first child, a daughter, on June 5th.

Gavin’s been agonizing about the potential conflict for months, though it intensified as the next homestand became a target date in recent weeks.

He grew up in Nebraska but never had a team of his own until the Nationals arrived in 2005. Rebecca, an Arizona native, liked the Diamondbacks and Cubs but fell for the Nationals when Wil Nieves launched his big walk-off home run against the Cubs in ‘08.

The nervous first-time father considered all possibilities including an early arrival for the baby or, in a passing thought, attending the game anyway.

“I reacted with severe excitement that quickly turned into fright, and then to despair,” he said.

“I thought he was serious about missing the birth to watch Strasburg’s Major League debut and I was a bit upset,” Rebecca added.

While still hopeful that scheduling might allow them to be at the game, the couple is ready to welcome the world’s youngest Strasburg fan regardless of whether they can watch the elite prospect’s debut.

“While I may cry, scream, cheer, holler, and break things for this team, there isn’t anything in the world I wouldn’t do for my wife and soon to be daughter -- including missing the event that people will claim they were at 100 years from now,” Gavin said.

“Either way, this experience is certainly going to help me remember my daughter’s birthday. I’m so horrible with dates.”

Gavin and Rebecca have tickets for June 6th and June 9th.

“Early labor can last hours and I hear it isn’t too miserable and [it is] good to have distractions. So I could go to the game even if the baby is on the way,” Rebecca joked.